“For the first time, we’re going to do something unprecedented in the Azores, in the country and even internationally, with the dimension that the meat festival will reach, which will have greater concentration and dynamism from the training, to the utilization and ending, on the last two days, with a barbecue open to the population.”
This is how Jorge Rita, President of the Azores Agricultural Federation, announced the Azores Beef Fest.
The festival, which takes place on September 7 and 8 on the island of São Miguel, will make 2,100 kg of meat available, combining training and tastings to highlight “the excellence” of this product from the Azores.


Organized by the Regional Strategy Centre for Meat in the Azores (CERCA) and the Azores Agricultural Federation, the four-day event will see the participation of seven specialist chefs in meat preparation, from the mainland, Brazil and the Azores, who will demonstrate how to prepare pieces for grilling beef.
Brazil will be joined by Itamar BBQ, who is head of a station at the main barbecue events in Brazil (Porkexpolatam, Bárbaros BBQ, among others); Claudião Assador, who was South American champion in 2018, and Serginho Montana, master of floor-roasted ribs.
Completing the team of roasters are Alexandre Ferreira, from BBQ Meats Portugal, a master of slow cooking in the smoker, and Diego Sales, a grill specialist. Both have Brazilian origins and join the hosts: Alexandre Coelho (grills) and Bruno Sousa, on the pit smoker.

Scheduled for September 7 and 8, at the Santana Agricultural Market, in the municipality of Ribeira Grande, the festival will include four barbecue stations: ground fire, with the preparation of the famous rib, the clothesline, which will have items such as slow-cooked shank, smoked meats in the famous Texan pit smoker (brisket and hamburger) and the traditional grill (parrilla).
“There’s a whole range of names that will be distributed at the tasting and people will be amazed at the amount that isn’t used and this is the big focus,” said Jorge Rita.
Tickets for the barbecue festival can be purchased online for 40 euros per day, with “the right to try and repeat the various cuts, in an open food format with dessert. Drinks are not included in the ticket.
The Azores Beef Fest program includes a masterclass for butchers, cutting rooms, and caterers at the São Miguel Slaughterhouse, a workshop for producers and operators at the São Miguel Agricultural Association, and the first Azorean Barbecue Festival at the Santana agricultural market.

Chef Diogo Martins will be using parts to make beef tartare and tataki accompanied by products from the Azores.
Jorge Rita, who also chairs the São Miguel Island Agricultural Association, said that the event aims to demonstrate the various processes, from cutting up the pieces of meat until they reach the plate, so that people can understand “the differentiation and the best use” of the product. “People are going to be amazed at the amount that isn’t used,” said the person in charge of the event.
“The initiative will serve as a shock for everyone to realize the importance of meat. We in the region can and should take advantage of the marketing that people can do for our meat by enjoying tastings here, especially tourism, and with positive repercussions replicated in the archipelago’s economy,” stressed Jorge Rita, President of AASM, at the presentation of the Azores Beef Fest initiative.

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.